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Red Wine/Story
Fondness Story I. Conflict I once considered what I'd do if the Master Attendant that summoned me was unable to earn my respect. As it turns out, the girl who eventually summoned me surprised me by surpassing my expectations. Despite being the eldest daughter of a Duke, she had not been brought up pampered and spoiled. Her posture was graceful, her smile radiated self-confidence, and her every word and laugh was mesmerising. The queues of hopeful suitors stretched from her manor to the city gates. This state of affairs could not be attributed to the valuable gems on the necklace around her neck, nor the expensive clothes she wore. Nobility is not defined by the quality of their outfits, nor the luxuriousness of their lifestyle. Without pride and conviction, the nobility were merely hollow shells trying to fill their vapid lives with luxury and hedonism. The girl who summoned me had an exquisitely designed feathered fan clasped in her hand. She circled me several times, inspecting me closely, before heaving a sigh of relief. "Phew... This is great! And here I was afraid I would summon a giant fool like that idiot! You look great, almost like a vampire from the stories, even." Even as she said this, her eyes grew wide with wonder. "Hmph, I'm gonna go show you off to that idiot. I'm the Master Attendant of a Food Soul now too! And my Food Soul is clearly so much better than his!" Subsequently, I learned why my summoning brought her such relief: The Food Soul before me clearly had no taste in clothing, and had no conception of elegance or decency. Even the way he moved seemed crude and barbaric. My brows tightened with irritation. My Master Attendant had introduced this rude and brazen brute as Steak, the food soul of her fiance. "Food Souls take after their Masters after all! You find him annoying too, don't you Red Wine?!" "And you'll have to marry him in the future. It must be hard on you, Master Attendant." "S-Shut up! Who would marry a man like that?! He's rude! And unromantic! And he doesn't care about me!" "Why would his rudeness matter? Was this not an arranged marriage?" "Shut up!!" I glanced at my blushing Master Attendant, then took a sip from the blood red wine in my glass. She's not honest with herself, huh. I stood in the shadow of the vineyard trellises, and could not help sighing as I watched the soon-to-be husband and wife start arguing after merely exchanging pleasantaries. These two really ought to have more time alone. At this point, I realized that something irritating had moved in front of me, and was walking toward the couple. I raised my hand to stop him. He glared at me, his crimson pupils fixed on my eyes. "Get lost." "What are you trying to do?" "There's a Fallen Angel in the city outskirts. I am reporting it to my Master Attendant. Don't get in my way." "Can't you see he's on a date? There's plenty of other Master Attendants in the city." "And how is a date more important than a Fallen Angel!? Back off!" I pulled my saber from the scabbard at my waist. The use of force typically isn't my style, but this bastard needs an education in proper manners. And although Steak's clothing, words and actions all infuriated me, I had to admit... the man had superb swordsmanship. "Oy! Steak! Why are you two fighting again!?" "Stay out of it! I'm gonna settle it once and for all with this asshole!" "Red Wine! Stop fighting with Steak!" "Please stay back or you might be injured. I've been meaning to discipline this uncouth bastard for a long time." "Ah~ You two have such a good relationship~ You see each other every day and you're still so close to one another~" "SHUT UP!!" "SHUT UP!!" II. Blood My Master Attendant often held tea parties with her circle of friends. Among her friends, one girl stood out from the rest as being particularly softspoken, kind and innocent. When this particular girl first saw me, she was startled, and immediately hid behind her Butler, who had been chaperoning her. From her hiding place, she cautiously questioned me. "Are you a vampire?" "What's the matter? Are you afraid of me?" "N-no, you look really handsome." Those bright, honest eyes of the furiously blushing maiden burned themselves into my memory. However, this girl went missing. After a banquet, she had boarded her carriage and left, but never reached her home. Of late, there had been many cases of the daughters of aristocrats and nobles vanishing without a trace. The man assigned to investigate these disappearances was none other than my Master Attendant's fiance. My Master Attendant was well aware that it was most likely that these girls met an untimely and cruel fate. She also knew that there was no way we would have allowed her to put herself in harm's way. Even so... "I can serve as bait. I trust that you will all protect me. I beg you. I want to capture whoever did this to her, personally. It was the first time I had ever seen my Master Attendant lower her head to her fiance. However, as I predicted -- "This case is none of your business. I have no reason to put a bystander in harm's way." As he said this, I noticed his hands tighten and clench, and I knew that this bastard would never put the woman he loved into a situation that dangerous. Steak's Master was just like steak in that regard - they couldn't understand a woman's heart. And such a clumsy, stupid man would never be honest and reveal his feelings to his beloved. They were both idiots. Still, I don't hate idiots like this. Let me be the tool of my Master's vengeance. Perhaps it's because everyone keeps calling me a vampire, I've become sensitive to the scent of blood. The blood of some people has a certain aromatic bouquet; while the blood of others carrieds a bitter and black odour. And a few have blood that reeks of rot and decay. And so when the elegant lady, with her refined elegance and charming smile, called upon my Master Attendant, I was well aware that no amount of perfumes could hide the stench of her blood. Unexpectedly, I was met with no resistance when I infiltrated the lady's castle. Her husband, the Baron, had passed away, and the lady Baronness would often host various banquets and parties to avoid loneliness. It was a simple matter to blend in with the guests. Yet, ever since I entered the main hall, I could feel a passionate gaze lingering upon me. I was fixed in the burning sights of the Baronness swathed in the stench of blood, as if she desperately desired something from me. Without knowing why, I was reminded of the folk legends of the kingdom. Ageless and undying, rejecting sunlight, feeding on blood. The aristocracy of the night. Could it be she thought I was an existence from those stories as well? Still, there was no reason to worry about a widow who was unable to even pluck a chicken. As our eyes met, I noticed an expression of surprise and delight dance across her features. With surprising speed, a servant pushed through the throngs of guests and arrived at my side. "Master, the lady requests your presence on the second floor" I placed the wine glass I was holding down, and calmly followed the servant through the revellers and dancers to the second floor. The lady, dressed in a dark coloured ballgown, stood before me, regal and powerful, then flashed me a smile. "Good sir, forgive my impertinence. Let us speak in the study." She wasn't the first to make the mistake of thinking I was a vampire. But she was the first to have become so excited and happy at the thought. III. The Temperature of Blood As I walked into the study, another person exited. I was unable to get a good look at the figure, but his smell was unmistakeable - the stench of blood, fresh blood, hung in the air, so thick as to be nauseating. I resisted the urge to vomit, and followed the Baroness into the room. As soon as the door had closed, the regal poise the lady had adopted previously vanished. Filled with mad passion, she grabbed my hand, and without my asking, divulged to me the entirety of her actions and schemes. In order to preserve her beauty and looks, she had fair maidens chosen at her banquets taken away. She thought that the fresh blood of young girls could be used as a miracle, anti-aging salve, and the corpses of those pitiful girls, bled empty, were left to rest in the icy tombs beneath the castle. And her reason for seeking me out was simple too. The legendary vampire counts were ageless and immortal, and possessed beauty that would never fade. More importantly, they were able to, through some vile ritual, turn ordinar humans into new vampires too. I can't disagree that many aspects of my appearance and personality are rather similar to those possessed by the vampires in these legends. And this is what the Baroness lusted for - immortality. In her excitement, she confided in me that she could continue capturing young maidens as human sacrifices, offering their blood to me. She had all the rooms in the castle renovated so that no sunlight could ever enter, all in preparation for the day I would come. I looked at the miserable human before me, and could not help lifting my hand to brush her hair back. Without even confirming whether or not I was the vampire whome she had dreamed of for so long, she had told me everything. But I have no sympathy for this type of foolishness. "What about the girls you kidnapped recently?" "They will be sacrifices to you, my Master, too! Although there aren't many left! You must believe me when I say more will be coming soon! Immediately!" "So... they're all..." "Yes! We will never be discovered, and Master will never have to worry about food again. And I, will be your loyal servant!" Her eyes were practically glowing with expectation, so bright that I could not help being reminded of the eyes of the girl from that day, hiding behind her butler. So... I'm too late, huh? What a failure. I couldn't even live up to the expectations of a single, exceptional young girl. "Baroness, I'm afraid your schemes have gone up in smoke. The blood in your body has decayed and rotted away, along with your soul. Forgive me for saying, but you smell worse to me than garbage. You have no right to be my servant." A soul who has willing let herself rot to this extent has no right, even to the truth. I'll let you regret your sins in the despair of death. I pulled my saber from my sheath, and, in a single stroke, plunged it to the hilt into her chest, even as her eyes remained wide in disbelief. She didn't have the time even for a gasp of pain, and died noiselessly on my blade. I stared as the blood began to run into the carpet from where she had fallen, and reached out to close her eyes. The scent of fresh blood hung heavily in the stale air of the study. I could barely resist. I slammed a fist into my own chest, desperately trying to hold back my own blood thirst. I cannot be tempted by this again. And especially not by blood this foul... Just then, a great crashing noise sounded from within the castle, shaking the floorboards beneath my feet. I ran from the study, heading straight for the main hall where the banquet was taking place. Yet, before I'd reached the main hall, a familiar, and infuriating, roar reached my ears. "RED WINE! GET THE HELL OUT HERE NOW!!! I KNOW YOU'RE IN HERE, AND I KNOW YOU WON'T LET YOURSELF GET KILLED BY TRASH OF THIS CALIBER! GET OUT HERE NOW!!" I grit my teeth and charged out onto the second floor balcony overlooking the main hall, then stopped dead in my tracks. The scene before me instantly washed away all earlier thoughts of beating Steak to a pulp. My Master Attendant had, at some point in time, put on a fashionable gown and blended into the attendees at the banquet. Even with her masque, she was still the centre of attention for the party-goers. Yet, even more eye-catching than her was the man who stood behind her, holding my Master Attendant to his breast. It was a perfect tableau, as if the two were lovers. And the one holding on to my unconscious Master Attendant, the stench of fresh blood hanging thick around him, was the man who had left the study just as I had entered. He regarded the massed knights and soldiers, who had smashed the main doors down and barged into the banquet, as if they were a mere amusement. Almost as if he were saying he had done nothing wrong. I knew then that this bastard was not merely an ally to the baroness, but the one who had pushed her down the road toward becoming a demon. I couldn't understand why Steak seemed relieved, for a brief moment, to see me appear on the second floor. In a split second, he had tightened his grip on his claymore, and began sizing up the man standing in the circle of soldiers. I leapt from the balcony, landing at Steak's side. My Master Attendant's fiance ran up beside us, his face torn with worry. Even the hand that held his sword was shaking. "Let her go. Let me take her place" "You think I give a damn about you? Your blood is nowhere near as warm." My grip on my saber tightened. This was my carelessness. I never imagined that my Master Attendant, no matter how stubborn and determined she was, would take advantage of my absence and attempt to infiltrate this place on her own. Steak's expression did not waver, glaring daggers at the bastard who had started to laugh innocently. In the next moment, without any warning, he had charged the man. I stepped into the fight as well, drawn in by his split-second decision. No words were necessary at this point - I seized any opportunity in the battle to slice and stab. Yet, the man had my Master Attendant hostage. Neither Steak nor I could act freely, and a powerful counterattack left Steak's shoulder a bloody mess. Some of that blood splashed onto that Bastard's face as well, eliciting a bizarre response. That innocent, fake smile vanished, replaced by a spine-chilling look of predatory hunger... or thirst. In the next instant, my Master Attendant was thrown to the ground. I rushed to her side, then turned to the the two for whom the main hall had become their sole battlefield. From the moment we had exchanged blows, I knew with absolute certainty - this man was not human. He was like us. he was a food soul. And I knew why he glared at Steak with those eyes, why the thirst inside him was now so strong. I had seen those eyes on another woman just a few moments earlier. It was the gaze of someone who had found something they had been searching for after a long time. Those who are unable to savour the taste of blood, will never understand. I had never seen anybody - neither a human, nor indeed, a food soul - with blood as warm as Steak's. This warmth was irresistable to any existence that lived in the ice cold darkness and shadows of the world. It was like a lump of blazing coal in the dead of winter. You knew it would burn your hands, but you held on to it anyway. IV. Promises and Duties The Food Soul was pushed into retreat by the combined assault of Steak and the other knights. As he departed, the look he gave Steak would have chilled the mind of any other person - yet the dumb blockhead didn't even give the incident any thought. We didn't spend much time in pursuit, hurrying back to the main hall. Thanks to our contract, I knew that my Master Attendant was completely unharmed - she was actually awake. Still, the man who had never spoken kindly to her ever wasn't aware of this. I watched her struggle to keep herself from smiling as her fiance cried agonizingly, clasping her body in his arms, and couldn't help shaking my head at the farce. And so, the man reknowned for being strict and serious with his men, with his men as his witnesses, laid bare those feelings that he had kept hidden in his heart all this time. The tears were still streaming down his face as the girl in his arms sat up and began yelling at him. "You idiot! If you loved me, you didn't need to awit till I was dying to say it!" "Y-y-y-you! You've gone too far now!" "I don't care! Say it again! Say you love me! Say you love me more than anything again!" "I never said anything like that!" "You definitely just said it! Everyone hear heard it clearly!" "Which one of you bastards heard me say anything huh!? Anyone who did won't be getting any pay this month!" And so the matter was concluded, somewhat happily. The curtains were closed on the incident that had shaken the entire kingdom. Shortly after, the couple that never stopped telling everyone that they were merely pawns in an arranged marriage of convenience finally had a wedding in a cathedral in the city. Just like before, the two of them never stopped arguing. Their hair grew white and they bickered like before, but they never once entertained the idea of leaving the other. "Look at you two. How old are you now, and you're still bickering like children?" "You're one to talk Red Wine! You and Steak are fighting everyday too!" "T-that's because he's intentionally goading me to fight!" "Tch... Liar." The man departed from this world some time before Master Attendant. And my Master Attendant, who had been playful and rebellious while the man was still around became reflective and compassionate. She had noticed that I always watched the two of them from the shade. Once, while accompanying her, she suddenly grabbed my hand. "I know. For him, the two most important people were myself, and Steak. Red Wine, I have one last request to make of you, and I hope you will agree no matter your thoughts on the matter." I looked at her warm and kindly smile. Some undiscernible thought flashed through my heart, but I could not understand it, and did not think about it. I nodded. "I know you and Steak always go on about hating each other. But I also know that your relationship is exceptionally strong. In his place, and in my place as well, please, take care of Steak when we're gone, alright?" "...tch. That might prove troublesome. However, I will do as you say and look after him." V. Red Wine A long time ago, in a kingdom far away, there lived a handsome knight and a beautiful princess. The parents of the two knew each other well, and they had grown up together. The knight was the eldest son of a noble house, and the two were considered an ideal match. It was a shame that the knight and the princess seemed to hate each other so much. The uprighteous knight never learned how to win a woman's heart, and was too shy to tell the princess his true feelings. The princess dropped plenty of hints to the knight, but the knight was oblivious. At times the Knight would even get angry at the princess. "Why are you so stupid? How could you get hurt from something so minor?" --Why didn't you come to me for help. "Don't put your nose where it doesn't belong, go back to your home and wait." --It's too dangerous for you, and I'm worried for your safety. I will deal with this for you. And so, the Princess rebelliously charged into the old and foreboding castle. And just as the Princess met with danger, the knight came to her rescue. With the Princess in his arms, the Knight laid bare his feelings. The witch was killed and the Knight and Princess lived happily ever after. The best possible ending to the story. And the Princess was very lucky. She was supported not just by her beloved knight, but also by a prince who guarded her from the shadows. This prince didn't have blonde hair or blue eyes. He was like a vampire, and hated the sun. He even had a taste for blood. The prince never interefered with the Knight and Princess, and merely calmed the princess down when she was driven mad by the Knight's coldness. And the Knight too, had his own squire. And it was a shame that his squire seemed to hate the prince so much. When the witch stole away the Princess' best friend, the prince chose not to console the Princess. He chose to invade the castle. For the Princess. For the Knights. The knights had an oath. They were not to harm women, and they were not to harm the weak. The witch, the prince surmised, fell under the protection of the oath. So he would deal with this problem. The prince could not have expected the Witch to invite him to join her. The witch thought he was the demon king. But the witch could not have known - nobody could have known. The Prince who had lived his whole life in the shadows, upon meeting with the squire who shone as brilliantly as the sun itself, no longer desired the path of darkness. There was no way she could have known that once, when her Demon King was about to fall into the path of darkness, the squire had dragged him out of the shadows. The squire had made an oath to the prince. If there ever comes a day where the prince would fall to the darkness, the squire would personally execute the prince with his own hand. And so, the prince was able to confidently stand in the sun. "I still feel Canaan sounds much better than 'The Knights of the Holy Sword'. We might as well call ourselves the Choirboys of the Holy Sword at that point!" "We ARE knights! And what the hell is 'The Order of Canaan' anyway!?" "Canaan!" "Holy Sword!" The adorable girl sighed, turning her tea cup in her hands. It was tough watching the leaders of the knights squabble like this. "You two really have a good thing going, huh? ,,,Arguing like this everyday, yet you both have never considered abandoning each other. Ah, which reminds me, Red Wine, I received a letter adressed to you yesterday. It smells awfully like blood. Has anything happened?" Red Wine watched Gingerbread pull an envelope from the pocket at her waist. He motioned for Steak to stop, then grabbed the letter and went outside of the inn they were currently staying in. He pulled the letter free from the envelope. The letter was written in an elegant script using a strange, rust brown ink, crumbling to the touch. The whole letter seemed to exude the scent of blood. He reread the letter a few times, his brow wrinkling. Then he quickly stuffed the letter into one of the oil lamps hanging outside the inn doors, waiting until the faded yellow paper had been burnt to black ashes. Then he laughed. He had once given into his blood thirst. He had become lost, and he had almost become Fallen. But Steak, in his own brazen and crude fashion, had pulled him back from the abyss. "The warmth of blood...? It's not for some pathetic excuse that I continue to stay by his side, you miserable and contemptible fool." Category:Food Soul Story